Blogs

I really love touring. I love doing readings, and I try to do as many as I can.
So far, for For All the Men (and Some of the Women) I’ve Known, I’ve read at Resonance Reading Series in Montreal, and I just had a chance this weekend to read at Word on The Street in Halifax, and to do a signing at Chapters Indigo in Bayer’s Lake, also in Halifax, the next day. They were incredibly wonderful experiences.
I’m really excited for the Toronto launch on September 28th.
I love travelling to new places, I love meeting other writers and readers, who are just as excited about connecting over a shared love of words and books.

Zoe Whittall is one of my literary heroes. I remember the day that I discovered her first book, the feeling of relief and excitement as I read each page. I was studying Creative Writing, and feeling depressed about how different my writing was to everything we were reading in class. I discovered her first collection of poetry, The Best Ten Minutes of Your Life (MCG Books, 2001) at Pages Bookstore on Queen St, and I was so inspired. Zoe’s writing was so singular and confident, so refreshingly honest, energetic and full of insight.

Jowita Bydlowska is one of the most exciting writers in Canada. Her first book, Drunk Mom (Penguin, 2012)is a beautifully written, fearless and deeply introspective memoir about motherhood and overcoming addiction. Her wonderful first novel, Guy (which will be published by Wolsak and Wynn this October) is subversive, fiercely intelligent and funny.
I was lucky enough to get to read one of the first drafts, and I remember staying up until 2:00 am to finish it, because I couldn’t tear my eyes away from my computer screen.

I want to share one of the short stories from For All the Men (and Some of the Women) I've Known.
The book is divided into sections: Meeting, Falling In, Falling Out, Friendship and Resolution.
This story appears in the Falling Out Section.
If I had to describe it, I would say it's about social expectation versus reality, and also, why people decide to stay.
It's also about consent, and guilt, and how unclear the line between the two can sometimes appear.

Amy Jones’ We’re All In This Together (M&S, 2016) is a remarkable debut novel. Featuring an idiosyncratic family of characters who are vulnerable, at times hilarious, and always completely believable, it’s a must read (and trust me, when you do, you won’t be able to put it down) Amy’s writing has always been spectacular. Her award winning collection of short stories, What Boys Like (Biblioasis, 2009) is the perfect mix of social observation, raw emotion and expert descriptions of Nova Scotia.
We had a chance to talk about characterization, her writing process, and the importance of representing Northern Ontario in literature.

Megan Coles’ debut collection of short stories, Eating Habits of the Chronically Lonesome, is one of the most exciting books I’ve read this year. It has won multiple awards, including a Relit award. Megan is also the co-founder and artistic director of Poverty Cove Theatre Company and the executive director of Newfoundland arts journal Riddle Fence. She is currently working on her debut novel, Little Yellow Heart, which will be published by House of Anansi next year.
We got to talk this week about writing, Newfoundland culture, feminism and more, and like her characters, Megan was brilliant, thoughtful and incredibly honest.

Chad Pelley is one of my favourite writers. We first met at Word on the Street in Halifax, in 2010, when he was touring for his impressive debut novel, Away From Everywhere (Breakwater Books, 2009) and I was touring for my first short story collection, Got No Secrets (Tightrope Books, 2010). Since then, Away From Everywhere has been made into a movie, and he’s written another great novel, Every Little Thing (Breakwater, 2013) and an excellent collection of short stories called Four Letter Words (Breakwater, 2016). We had a chance to chat this week about Four Letter Words, the process of writing short stories, and more.

I’m incredibly happy to be this month’s Writer in Residence.
I’m so honoured to join the list of writers whose work I love, who’ve been writers in residence in the past.
The timing is perfect because my new book, a collection of short stories called For All the Men (and Some of the Women) I’ve Known will be published this month by Tightrope Books.

For All the Men… is my second collection of short stories (my first was called Got No Secrets, and it was published in 2010) My first novel, Too Much on the Inside, was published last year.

Most writers don’t make much money, and those in the small press realm can barely afford a wet shoebox to live in. When I visit high schools and the students ask me how much money I make from my poetry books, for example, I tell them that, if all the copies sell — a rare scenario in itself — I might make enough to pay half a month’s rent.

Anyway, it’s clear we don’t do what we do for money. If money was all we were after, we’d all be dentists, lawyers, accountants and inter-stellar weasel trainers.

I have come to talk with you about Kim Novak. I was a big fan of the iconic Hollywood actress even before I saw what would become my favourite film of all time, Vertigo. I consider that film the high point of Novak's career, as well as Alfred Hitchock's. And James Stewart's. I saw Vertigo for my first time in a class on Hitchcock and Brian De Palma I took at York University around 1980 with the brilliant film critic and teacher Robin Wood. Robin, who died in 2009, was an enormous influence on my life, and especially on my life as a writer. To the best of knowledge, I had never before met a radical gay Marxist Freudian. Certainly not one who had studied under F. R. Leavis.